Alberta & Northwest Territories

Champions taking action for
the Path to Change

In 2015, our Alberta team was thrilled
to launch the CNIB Champions advocacy
group, consisting of 50 CNIB clients and
supporters who are passionate about
the need to integrate post-vision loss
rehabilitation therapy (PVLRT) into the
continuum of care. Throughout the year,
these Champions participated in a series of
advocacy campaigns during which they met
with Members of the Legislative Assembly,
wrote letters and spoke at various events
and forums. We will continue this important
work until full PVLRT integration is achieved
in Alberta.

Bringing music therapy to little
ones across Alberta

For children who are blind or partially
sighted, music therapy is a sensory
experience that stimulates their minds and
sparks their creativity. Children as young as
one and two participate in the CNIB Music
Therapy program once a month in Calgary
and Edmonton. The music therapists
incorporate song, repetition, instrument
exploration, movement and relaxation into
every session, allowing the children to
develop their emotional and physical health
as well as social skills – not to mention a
love for music.

Reaching out to remote communities

Many people who live in remote
communities can find the challenges of
vision loss to be even more daunting as
support can be difficult to reach. That’s
why our specialists travelled across
Alberta and the Northwest Territories
last year to provide low vision clinics,
assessments and rehabilitation therapy
to people with vision loss in isolated
communities. What’s more, many
participants were then connected to
additional services to help them
continue to build their independence
and confidence.

Meet Marlon Adarme

Marlon Adarme was an engineer at a
Calgary oil and gas company until his life
completely changed virtually overnight.
Suddenly, Marlon lost his vision to
diabetic retinopathy, and, just as quickly,
he had to give up his job.

While his wife was at work and his kids
were at school, Marlon spent his days at
home, unsure of how to cope. His family
was unable to provide the level of care he
needed and considered sending him back
to their home country, the Philippines, so
that other family members could better
care for him.

When Marlon came to our CNIB office
in Calgary, he was introduced to a CNIB
specialist who taught him to do things for
himself again – from preparing meals,
to identifying commonly used items, to
navigating around his home. He was also
provided with a white cane, along with
training to help improve his confidence
while travelling in the community.

A month later, Marlon came back to us
with a smile on his face, saying not only
had CNIB provided him with a better
perspective on living independently, but
he now felt more hopeful about keeping
his family together.